Conor Kennedy, the son of U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., has been placed on a Russian international wanted list over his previously undisclosed service with Ukraine's International Legion, potentially exposing the 32-year-old American to a prison sentence of as long as 10 years if he comes into Russian custody.
The Basmanny District Court in Moscow authorized Kennedy's arrest in absentia on Aug. 12, according to Russian state media, which said authorities accuse him of serving as a mercenary on Ukraine's side. Russian reports put the potential sentence at between seven and 10 years.
Kennedy hasn't been detained, and the available reporting doesn't indicate that he is in Russia or plans to travel there. The allegations and details of the court action have been reported through Russian state media, and the source material provides little information about the evidence Moscow has assembled beyond Kennedy's acknowledged service in Ukraine.
Kennedy, an American lawyer who previously drew celebrity attention for dating Taylor Swift, disclosed his Ukraine deployment himself in October 2022. He said he had quietly traveled to the country after Russia's full-scale invasion and enlisted in the International Legion without informing most relatives or friends.
"Like many people, I was deeply moved by what I saw happening in Ukraine over the past year. I wanted to help," Kennedy wrote at the time.
He said he learned about the International Legion, an organization created to incorporate foreign volunteers into Ukraine's defense forces, and went to the Ukrainian embassy the following day. Kennedy deliberately concealed both his whereabouts from people at home and his prominent family identity from most of those around him in Ukraine.
"I told one person here where I was, and I told one person there my real name," Kennedy wrote. "I didn't want my family or friends to worry, and I didn't want to be treated differently there."
Kennedy acknowledged that his deployment was brief and provided relatively few operational details about what he did while serving. His public account instead focused on the personal impact of joining Ukraine's defense effort and experiencing military life during the early months of the war.
"My time in Ukraine wasn't long but I saw a lot and I felt a lot," Kennedy wrote.
He also said the experience changed his view of military service. "It is scary," Kennedy said. "But life is simple, and the rewards for finding courage and doing good are substantial."
Those public admissions now appear to form at least part of the backdrop for Moscow's case. Russian authorities have characterized Kennedy as a mercenary, although the source material doesn't indicate that Kennedy accepts that description or that he has responded to the latest Russian allegations.
The distinction could be important. Ukraine established the International Legion after Russia's February 2022 invasion to recruit foreign volunteers into its armed forces, while Moscow has repeatedly sought to characterize foreigners fighting for Kyiv as mercenaries rather than regular members of Ukraine's military.
Kennedy's family ties give the case an additional diplomatic dimension. He is the son of Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who serves as health secretary in President Donald Trump's administration, and Kennedy's late former wife, Mary Richardson Kennedy.
There was no reported response from RFK Jr. or other members of the Kennedy family in the source material following the Moscow court order. There also was no indication that the U.S. government had formally responded to Russia's decision.
